Jerome Wetzel is the Chief Television Critic for Seat42F and a regular contributing reviewer on Blogcritics. He also appears on The Good, The Bad, and the Geeky podcast and Let's Talk TV With Barbara Barnett.

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Monday, July 21, 2014

Blu-ray Review: ‘Orphan Black – Season Two’

BBC America’s Orphan Black
is a hidden gem that many have not yet discovered. Starring
criminally-snubbed-by-the-Emmys Tatiana Maslany as Sarah, Cosima,
Alison, Rachel, and others, the clone drama is worth watching for her
performances alone, giving the best multi-role acting in memory. Season
one took a bit of time to get us into the mythology and lay out the
framework, but season two
hits the ground running, taking us deeper into this world and exploring
the various personalities in all new ways. It’s a terrific series that
deserves more attention than it’s getting, so I definitely recommend
checking it out.

When season one ends, Sarah is desperately searching for her
daughter, Kyra (Skyler Wexler), who is last seen with Sarah’s former
foster mother, Mrs. S. (Maria Doyle Kennedy). Sarah is pursued by Rachel
and the Dyad Institute, which is striking deals with each of the clones
as it further researches its creation. Alison agrees to participate in
the organization easily enough, wanting to get her life back on track.
Cosima is a tougher sell, but faced with a deadly illness that is
killing her, she reluctantly accepts their offer of lab space and
equipment, putting the three central ladies on different pages.

From here, the story veers in a number of interesting directions. We
get to see what makes Rachel tick a little bit, and we also see the
sisterly bond that connects the women made from the same DNA. More new
clones are introduced, at least peripherally, and a character I thought
we’d seen the last of (I can’t spoil who) returns in a surprising and
significant manner. There are subplots involving Kyra’s father, Cal
(Michiel Huisman, Game of Thrones, Treme), and a crazy cult
that wants to breed one of the girls. Toss is hanging threads such as
Cosima’s romance with Delphine (Evelyne Brochu), Alison’s crumbling
marriage to Donnie (Kristian Bruun), Art’s (Kevin Hanchard) continuing
investigation, another delicious TV part for Michelle Forbes, a healthy
dose of Sarah’s brother, Felix (Jordan Gavaris), and a shocking capper,
and it’s a very full year.

More than the action, though, I really dig the character and story development in Orphan Black.
It not only poses the moral question of cloning, but also shows us the
human side of the results of such an experiment. Then it asks, is the
product, which is actual people, owned by a corporation? Where would the
line be drawn in this new schema? Issues of trust are explored, and the
differences between the various clones are at least as enticing as the
similarities.

This two-disc set contains all ten episodes of the recent run, as
well as a good number of extras. The most interesting is probably the
‘Making Of’ the four clone dance scene, which, despite being the only
scene in the series so far where it’s obvious that the camera is trying
to trick us and Maslany hasn’t really been copied, is still quite
enjoyable and touching. There are also deleted scenes of Alison and
Donnie, a script-to-screen featurette, a look at the hair and makeup in
the show, “The Cloneversation” special with Wil Wheaton (The Wil Wheaton Project), and more. It’s enough that most fans should definitely be satisfied.

Orphan Black is a show that screams to be watched in high
definition. There is a dark color palette, and the lu-ray version is
crisp and detailed. Colors are nicely contrasted, and the shadows are
layered. The sound in high definition is also excellent. The rear
speakers are not used as much as one might like, but are better utilized
than in many television releases. Dialogue is clear and effects are
well mixed. It’s a very immersive viewing experience.

I cannot stress enough how excited I am by this release, and if you have not been watching Orphan Black
yet, please, please check it out, because it deserves the eyeballs.
Just make sure you start with season one, as Season Two is not
stand-alone.